Learning the Ropes
by FaithInHim4ever
Summary: 2nd Kiersten story. While assigned to the Hartson family, Kiersten learns the importance of teamwork. Along with helping her assignment, Kiersten learns to keep the faith-even if things don't go right at first. R/R


DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT own the characters from TBAA

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT own the characters from TBAA. They belong to CBS. Everyone you don't recognize, I do own.

Enjoy!

God loves you!

A/N: This story is the second in a new series of mine. The first story is called "Kiersten's New Beginning." I hope everyone likes this second installment. Also, in this series, Gloria works with Monica as a first year supervisor.

"Learning the Ropes"

Chapter 1-A Long Forgotten Dream

Monica smiled as she turned the rope for Kiersten. She was teachin' her wee angel how to double dutch for their next assignment.

Along with teaching Kiersten the ropes for this assignment, the Irish angel was also teaching her 'wee angel the ropes of being an angel of God.

Ever since Kiersten's first assignment, Monica was confident that the wee girl would do just fine. She had the determination and drive to succeed as well as the heart.

"Bubble gum, bubble gum in a dish, how many pieces do you wish!" Gloria chanted as she turned the other side of the rope for the young angel. She was on this assignment as well. Although she wasn't workin' with Monica and Kiersten directly, she was still doing her part.

After a few more minutes of jumping, Monica stopped her 'little one and Kiersten. She declared it was time for a lemonade break and some cuddle time.

Hearing the latter, Kiersten jumped one last time before running over to where Monica was sitting. She loved spending time with her supervisor. She and Monica had grown close in the last few weeks and the little girl viewed Monica as a mother more than a supervisor.

"That was fun!" Kiersten announced, wrapping her arms around Monica's neck for a hug.

"Aw, I'm glad you had fun, sweetheart. But I Think you wore your Aunt Gloria out." Monica said, observing the way Gloria was sweating.

The younger angel shook her head.

"No she didn't." Gloria insisted. She came over and draped an arm around Kiersten, hugging her close. "That was a lot of fun!"

Monica giggled.

"I'm glad you both enjoyed yourselves." The Irish angel replied.

"We sure did!" Kiersten confirmed. She then held a cup of lemonade out to Gloria.

"Aw, thanks, sweetie. I needed that." Gloria said. She took the cup from the little girl and drank half in one gulp.

Monica eyed Gloria knowingly.

"Not tired, huh?"

Kiersten giggled at Monica's actions.

Monica waited until Kiersten had swallowed her sip and had placed the glass down before scooping her up and tickling her stomach, making the younger angel squeal with giggles.

Once the giggles had subsided, Monica set Kiersten in her lap and hugged her close.

"So what's this assignment about anyway?" Kiersten asked. She was eager to get started.

Her new young charge's eagerness reminded the Irish angel fondly of Gloria back when the just-turned supervisor had started out.

Gloria hadn't changed much in the last few years, but Monica would still miss training her 'little one.

Monica sighed wistfully as she gazed up at the sky before her gaze traveled back to Kiersten

"Well, this assignment is about double dutch, but it's also about learning how to pull together as a family when things are falling apart. The family we're about to meet doesn't know how to do that. They're turning to other things instead of God to help them through difficult times."

"Why do some people do that?" Kiersten wondered aloud.

"Honey, I've been tryin' to figure out the answer to that question for the past five years now." Gloria chimed in. She grinned slightly before drinking more of her lemonade.

Monica gave her former case worker a look before attempting to answer the question.

"Sometimes Humans are afraid to put their faith in what they can't see." She explained.

"But God's at work every day." Kiersten observed. "He performs miracles and makes good things happen all the time."

"Aye He does. But some people have a hard time seeing His hand at work."

Kiersten nodded. She enjoyed learning things from Monica.

"All right. Are you ready to meet our next assignment?"

"Uh-huh!" The little angel replied, eagerly. She jumped from Monica's lap and ran over to Gloria. "Are you coming with us, Aunt Gloria?"

Gloria grinned. She didn't mind being called 'Aunt Gloria. She knew Kiersten viewed Monica as her mother, so it was only natural that she would call the newly turned supervisor 'aunt.

Gloria frowned as she bent down to give the child a hug.

"I wish I could, sweetheart. But you'll see me soon enough. I'm a part of this assignment too."

Kiersten grinned at this news.

"Aw, you be good for Monica, okay? I'll see you later. I love you." With that, Gloria gave Kiersten a hug before embracing Monica. After the hugs were exchanged, Gloria was gone.

"Love you too!" Kiersten called after her aunt.

Monica smiled fondly down at the newest angel as she lead her to the car. She loved Kiersten so much. She thought of the young girl as her own. She felt she had to protect her more so than she did Gloria because of Kiersten's age and size.

The other thing that made Monica over protective of the younger angel was the fact that she was a child first. She was no more than ten years old. Therefore, it was the Irish angel's job to protect her and show her the way.

"So where are we heading?" The young girl asked. She was never short on questions, which was another similarity between her and Gloria.

Monica giggled as she put the car in drive before taking off down the road.

"Well we're going to meet our assignments. Their names are Abby, Kayla and Brooke. Kayla is eight and Brooke is four. Kayla is goin' to be entering' the double dutch competition that Tess will be coaching."

"Let me guess, I'm gonna enter it too?" Kiersten asked. Her blue eyes were full of hope and the Irish angel thought she saw some excitement in them as well.

"Aye you will."

"Yes!" Kiersten cheered. She pumped her fist into the air, making Monica laugh.

"When we get to the house, you need to be on your best behavior. You can't touch anythin' and you need to listen to me."

Kiersten gave Monica a look that said, "Don't I always?"

Monica shook her head.

"I mean you need to listen to Abby as well as me."

Kiersten nodded. She knew what Monica was talkin' about now. The child had no problem listening to Monica or Gloria, but she had a wee bit of trouble listening to other older angels or adults in authority. Tess was one of them as well as Andrew.

For some reason, Kiersten didn't have problems listening to Rafael at all. She really liked him and the two got along great.

Secretly, Kiersten hoped that Rafael would be the one coaching the double dutch contest, even her Aunt Gloria, but she could handle Tess for a few days. She did like her, but sometimes she thought the superior angel was a little uptight.

"Kiersten? Sweetheart, we're here." Monica announced twenty minutes later.

Kiersten opened her blue eyes to see a red brick house in the distance. She grinned at the prospect of living there. It seemed nice.

Stretching her arms above her head, Kiersten yawned before taking her seatbelt off and following Monica out of the car.

They walked up a path lined with flowers until they came to the house they would be staying at for the time being.

Ringing the doorbell, the two angels waited for someone to answer it.

No more than two minutes later, the door was opened to reveal a woman with reddish brown hair and blue eyes standing there.

"Hi. You must be Monica, the new nanny. It's nice to meet you. I'm Abby Hartson and this is my youngest daughter, Brooke. Kayla is in her room. Come in."

"It's nice to meet you too. Thank you." Monica replied. She stepped into the house, followed by Kiersten.

Abby smiled down at Kiersten, making the new angel feel at ease right away.

"And who is this cutie-pie?" She asked.

Monica smiled sincerely down at Kiersten.

"This is my daughter, Kiersten. I hope you don't mind. She's home schooled, so I take her wherever I go."

This was true, considering Gloria taught Kiersten what she needed to know.

"Not at all. She and Kayla should get along great. Hi Kiersten. I like your shirt. Blue is my favorite color too."

"Thanks." Kiersten replied. "It's nice to meet you." She held her hand out for Abby to shake, making Monica beam with pride.

Kiersten wasn't short on manners, that was for sure.

"Well why don't I give you a tour of the house and then we can get you two settled." Abby suggested.

"That sounds lovely." Monica said. She put an arm around Kiersten as she led her through the house.

Walking up the stairs, Abby peeked into a bedroom with different colored stars on the walls. She smiled at the wee girl within before addressing her.

"Kayla, sweetie, there's someone here for you to meet. Her name is Kiersten. She and her mother are here to help us out for awhile."

The little girl, Kayla, smiled at Kiersten before getting up to greet her. She had the same color hair as her mother, but her eyes were a chocolate brown.

"Hi Kiersten!" Kayla greeted. "I'm Kayla."

"It's nice to meet you." Kiersten replied. "Do you like to read?"

Kayla nodded.

"Yup. You?"

Kiersten grinned.

"Oh yeah! I have an aunt who can read a whole book in five minutes!"

Kayla's brown eyes grew wide.

"Really?"

Kiersten nodded.

"Yup. Her name is Gloria. She's really nice."

Kayla grinned.

"I'd love to see her do that!"

Kiersten giggled.

"Do you like to draw?" The older girl asked.

Kayla nodded.

"I love it! I'm entering an art contest next week. Do you wanna see the picture I drew for it?"

"Sure!" Kiersten said. She then turned to Monica. "Monica, can I hang out with Kayla, please?"

Monica nodded.

"You sure can, darlin'. Be good, okay? If you need me, I'll be downstairs with Miss Abby."

"Okay. I love you." Kiersten said, throwing her arms around Monica's waist.

"Aw, I love you too, sweetheart." With that, Monica left the room. She was confident that Kiersten would be fine with Kayla.

Once Monica and Abby left, Kayla closed the door and started rummaging around for the picture in question.

"Why do you call your Mommy by her first name?" She asked, curiously.

Kiersten shrugged.

"She adopted me a few weeks ago. I might call her 'Mom someday, but not now. She doesn't mind. She loves me no matter what I call her. It's like "Punky Brewster." Punky never called Henry 'Dad."

Kayla nodded.

"Oh. Okay! I get it now." She said.

Kiersten grinned. She was glad she had been able to explain it in a way that didn't reveal her true identity just yet.

"Here it is!" Kayla announced. With that, she produced a painting of a rainbow filled sky and a unicorn in the middle of it.

Kiersten's jaw nearly hit the ground! She couldn't find the words to express how much she liked the painting at first.

Finally, after she regained her voice, she said the first thing that came to her mind.

"It's beautiful!"

Kayla grinned.

"Thanks. My Mom cried the first time I showed it to her."

Kiersten nodded. She remembered the first time she had sung a song Gloria had taught her. It had made Monica cry as well. Gloria explained that it was because Kiersten had a pretty singing voice and she had gotten the gift from the Father.

Kiersten enjoyed singing and she loved sharing the gifts God blessed her with.

"I like your jacket." Kayla commented, gazing at Kiersten's denim jacket with sparkles on it.

"Thanks. It's my favorite." The young girl said.

"Do you wanna play with my karaoke machine?" Kayla offered. "I love singing on it."

"Sure!" With that, the two new friends put in a CD and the fun began…

Meanwhile downstairs, Monica was busy playing a game with Brooke while talking to Abby. She was really starting to like the young woman. As for Brooke, the wee girl was adorable.

"Monica, it's your turn." Brooke announced, tapping Monica's shoulder gently.

"All right. Let's see…." The Irish angel said, picking up a card from the pile.

Abby smiled at the interaction between Monica and her youngest daughter. She had been afraid Brooke wouldn't take to Monica at first, but she had proven her wrong.

"So how long have you worked with children?" Abby asked as she put the pot roast on the stove.

"It feels like I've been doin' it my whole life." Monica said. She smiled down at Brooke as the child took her turn in the game. "I really love my job."

Abby grinned.

"Kiersten seems really close to you."

Monica nodded.

"Aye. I love her so much. She's a special wee girl."

Abby nodded.

"I can tell. Kayla hasn't really taken to many of the kids here. That was the first time I ever saw her happy to make a new friend."

Monica frowned at this. She knew this was her chance to get Abby to open up. She just prayed she wouldn't push her too far.

"Kayla seems friendly to me." Monica started.

"Oh she is." Abby confirmed. "It's just ever since my husband…well ever since my husband died, Kayla has been withdrawn."

"Was she really close to him?" Monica asked, trying to get as much information as she could.

Abby nodded.

"Yes. Kayla was definitely a Daddy's girl. It crushed her when the accident happened. They would go to double dutch tournaments together and he was the one to introduce Kayla to the sport. She hasn't competed since her father died. I've been trying to get her to enter the local contest that is bein' sponsored by the YMCA, but she won't do it."

Monica nodded.

"You never know. Kayla might change her mind."

"I don't know." Abby sighed. "Once Kayla has her mind made up, it's hard to persuade her other wise. She's like her father that way. But she's also determined as well. Once she sets her mind to something, there's nothing that can stop her from reaching her dream."

"That's great. Kiersten's like that as well." Monica told her new friend.

"Maybe Kiersten can talk her into it. Then again, it'll take a miracle for Kayla to agree to sign up."

Monica smiled knowingly.

"Don't give up hope just yet. God performs miracles every day. You just have to be patient and wait for them. Would you like some help with dinner?"

"That would be nice." Abby said. She set the vegetables in another pot as she spoke.

"Okay." With that, Monica set Brooke up with a coloring book and crayons before helping Abby prepare that night's meal…


End file.
